But not only are there no weak tracks, more importantly there are no redundant tracks, which brilliantly corrects my biggest problem with Chapter & Verse. Every song has its own take on the Quiet Child sound, simultaneously fitting into the album wonderfully and standing out as the only track on the album that does that one thing. From the outset we get a vibraphone-led instrumental track (that is a touch long, I must say), and a brilliantly sinister and heavy song in the title track. And they’re the only songs on the album that sound like that. The diversity here is a true characteristic of a band who has found a fully realised vision. This may be slightly behind its predecessor in terms of truly outstanding compositions, but it’s well above in terms of album consistency, flow and diversity.
Although, as I have said, this album does jump around a bit in mood and style, it’s not a genre-hopping mess, all of these songs are songs you could easily imagine Quiet Child writing. The entire album has a unifying thread of dark, sinister moods, which come forward in different flavours throughout. The aforementioned title track is the only real time on this record that Spiker cracks out the Muse influence that was prevalent on Chapter & Verse, and he does it in a way that Matt Bellamy would be truly envious of. Epic opening guitar solo above massive riffs? Done. Dark, moody piano break? It’s there. Enormous vocal line to break into a chorus? Of course. I love the post-apocalyptic vibe that this track has as well, reminding me a lot of short-lived Kiwi group Battle Circus in its tone.